Unmasking The Perfect Self

By Agrima Arya

This writing is dedicated to my younger self who thought that things will change if she does. Who was under the delusion that she was the one who needed to change in order to be accepted, validated, acknowledged and be “good enough”. The me that felt invisible and didn’t know how much longer she could hold on. The me that had lost faith in everything, herself included. 

To the girl who thought she needed to change to be enough,

We as humans have normalised change to such an extent that we often mistake it to adaptation. We all have changed from being happy beautiful beings into sad souls who constantly feel the urge to fit in, pressured to conforn. But why do we even feel the need to fit in to begin with? Why do we need to match the standards of beauty bygone? Why do we need to act a certain way for those insignificant beings to validate? The constant urge to be like them, to be a little more prettier, a little more feminine, a little more amiable. What for? Just for the sake of societal acceptance?

You’re beautiful and perfect even with your flaws, you don’t need to lose yourself to perfectly fit into someone else’s definition of ‘perfection’. Simply trying to be someone and something we’re not will only leave to self destruction. To be ‘them’ is to loose your own self. That’s the price one needs to pay and it’s not worth it because you won’t even continue to be ‘you’. Your flaws and imperfections are what make you ‘you’. Glorify them because they differentiate you from the rest. 

The world doesn’t need to change either. Let the world be, let them judge if they must, let them be happy in their cocoon of superiority they have themselves created. No one is you and no one can be you, that's the power you hold.

Keep all your insecurities aside and flaunt them. Be proud of the heart you possess, the heart that feels empathy and love and kindness towards all.

Learn to appreciate everything that you have and learn to love yourself because trust your elder self, you are so worth it. You deserve the best, always. Be true to yourself and don’t ever change for anyone but yourself. And as the saying goes, “Don’t worry if someone doesn’t like you. Most people are still struggling to like themselves. So just be yourself.”

Darling, You’re not ‘too much’, they just ain’t enough. You’re enough, always have been and always will be. 

By Agrima Arya